Travel Tushies – DIY Wipes for Travel & Public Restrooms

Have you ever been in desperate need of a clean toilet and yet the only thing available is a scummy truck stop, well thanks to #ZepSocialstars and our super awesome partnership, I’m sharing my handy little on-the-go cleaning trip with these DIY wipes for potty breaks on the go. Huge thanks to Socialstars for making this happen!

As it happens, we do quite a lot of traveling during the summer, and with that comes more than our fair share of unexpected stops to seedy truck stop restrooms. I would tell you some of the things I’ve seen in these truck stops, but I’ll spare you the gory details. Just imagine hair salon meets sanitation station, and that pretty much sums it up.

I’ve been as creative as I can be with my kids, but sometimes there’s only so much you can do with the standard restroom fare when your daughter has to use the restroom and you’re no less than 50 miles from the next acceptable stop. If you’ve ever been to the Florida panhandle, you know I’m not exaggerating here. My comfort level with swiping a toilet seat with a damp, brown paper towel is not high, and sometimes I’m left dangling my kid over the toilet seat hoping I have good aim that day. Let me pause to clarify that I always clean up my messes, although the same cannot possibly be said for most people.

I really don’t want to be the weirdo walking around rest areas carrying a full bottle of Zep Quick Clean Disinfectant, so I’ve come up with a simple way to have the protection I need right inside my purse. Sure, I trust Zep with my own messes at home, but I also trust it for someone else’s messes. I mean, let’s face it, I don’t know whose bum was sitting on the toilet seat before ours, and I want the best product to come between that toilet seat and my kids – or my own for that matter – on the market, which is why I made my Travel Tushies with a scrubby paper towel, and Zep Quick Clean Disinfectant. It kills 99.9% of bacteria including common bathroom bacteria; it cleans, disinfects, and deodorizes in one swipe (and if you’ve ever been in a travel rest stop, you know they sometimes need a little deodorizing); and it’s an effective virucide that kills the common cold and flu viruses. I’d really hate for my bum to catch cold.

These wipes are ridiculously simple to put together. Your most difficult decision will be trying to figure out how many you are going to need during your travels. For ease, we’re going to use 25 for this tutorial.

MATERIALS

Take your high quality paper towels, which can be found at Home Depot – convenient since that’s where you’ll also buy your Zep Commercial products – and separate them from the rest of the roll.

Begin by laying the first paper towel out on a smooth, flat surface, then spritz it with six sprays of Zep Quick Clean Disinfectant.

Lay your second paper towel so that it covers the top half first paper towel, then spritz that one with six sprays of Zep as well.

Fold the bottom paper towel up over the bottom half of the second paper towel.

Lay your third paper towel on the bottom half of the second paper towel and spritz with Zep, then fold the top part of the second paper towel over the top half of the third paper towel.

Repeat these steps until you have used all 25 paper towels, then place your stack into a gallon sized freezer bag and store inside your purse, or your car’s glove box.

We go through them so quickly that they’ve never gone dry on us, but I imagine after some time they would dry up, which is why it is important you decide just how many your family will need during your travels.

And that, my friends, is the least disgusting way to sit on a public toilet that I can possibly offer you. If you’re squeamish, you might also want to pack your rubber gloves.

About Summer

*You can reach Summer at summer@dirtyfloordiaries.com.* Born in Orlando, FL and raised in Juneau, Alaska; Summer prefers being outdoors hiking, skiing, or just livin' over being inside doing anything. She has a weakness for cheap red wine and good conversation and can always be counted on for a laugh. You won't find perfection here, just a big ole' mess and a few laughs. Feeling frustrated with your life? Visit The Dirty Floor Diaries and you'll leave feeling just a smidge better - Guaranteed or your visit's free.

You *COULD*, but Zep is a commercial grade cleaner, and you can just take as many as you think you’ll need in your purse rather than carrying a whole container of wipes in with you. I don’t know about you, but when I’m toting my kids around, I don’t have any extra arms for that kind of thing!